Tobi Soniyi in Abuja
The Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), has said that lawyers have the capacity to make meaningful inputs towards the realisation of good governance in Nigeria.
Speaking at the commissioning the Nigerian Bar Association House in Abuja, Osinbajo, however, added that integrity and accountability were needed for lawyers to make the desired impact on the lives of the people.
He tasked legal practitioners in the country on the need to imbibe the virtue of integrity in their professional dealings, saying that integrity and accountability remained the hallmarks of the profession.
He said: ”I believe that our profession has a lot to offer our nation, especially in its most difficult times.
“The most important aspect of that is integrity; our profession must demonstrate that we are capable of teaching integrity in this land.
“We should be believed for what we say we are; we must bear in mind that everyone is looking at us and that we are the example not just for our profession but for the entire country.”
He commended the NBA leadership for its unity of purpose in ensuring that the Bar House was not abandoned by successive NBA administrations, urging the various tiers of government in the country to emulate the Bar by completing projects started by previous administrations.
“One of the important lessons we have seen in this edifice is the power of unity. From Mr. Olisa Agbakoba to the pesidency of Augustine Alegeh, we see the completion of the building which by every account is possibly one of the most important edifices in this city of Abuja.
“It is a building that demonstrates the unity of the legal profession; it demonstrates our capacity to start and to finish which is by itself a very rare thing in this part of the world. I think what we have done has set an incredibly good example not just for our profession but our nation as a whole.”
Similarly, Osinbajo lauded the NBA under the out-going President, Augustine Alegeh (SAN) for using an electronic platform for the conduct of the recent Bar elections.
More details later
